Joni-Dale Morgan builds luxurious skincare brand while battling lupus

Managing Director of Morgan’s Creek, Joni-Dale Morgan leads a team of two women, manufacturing natural soaps, body butter, body splash, body cream, and scrubs, to name a few.

Before she was old enough to even count, Joni-Dale Morgan was being exposed to the principles of operating a business.

She spent much of her early life at the family businesses run by her dad, Desmond, in St Ann and Montego Bay.

It therefore came as no surprise to those who know Morgan that she launched her own manufacturing firm, Morgan’s Creek.

But it was her battle with the autoimmune disease, lupus that gave her the idea to make natural soaps and other skincare products.

“I initially started making natural soaps for my skin that would develop rashes as a result of lupus,” Morgan reflected. “Then I got to making soaps, but those were colorful and designed like food.”

Morgan eventually shelved that strategy, having found that customers were more enthralled by the beauty of the soaps and were not using them for the intended purpose – to help treat skin conditions such as eczema and acne.

Video shot and edited by Ramon Lindsay.

Since officially establishing the Morgan’s Creek in 2015, the young entrepreneur has produced a wide range of luxurious skincare products, spanning 40 categories.

For Morgan, the company has helped her to deal with the whirlwind of physical and emotional strain she faces as a result of living with lupus.

“I’ve been living with lupus for 15 years, and believe me, there are times when I don’t want to get out of bed, there are times when mentally, I can’t deal with it,” Morgan said.

“But coming here, working on the products and getting positive feedback from customers have been quite rewarding. It’s what keeps me going most of the times,” Morgan added, noting that she’s also been blessed with a supportive family and friends.

Morgan, who attended St Hilda’s High School and Northern Caribbean University, is looking to launch travel-sized products for retail sale as well as for hotels by 2019.

In the long term, she aims to expand her production line and see Morgan’s Creek become an internationally recognised brand.